Imaging session IC 63 The Ghost of Cassiopeia

 Imaging IC 63 – The Ghost of Cassiopeia

A few nights ago, I finally met up with two exceptionally talented astrophotographers - WA Emery Photography and Snapadile Dundee Photography - down at one of my favourite haunts: Wembury Beach on the South Devon coast. It’s the sort of place where the sky feels close enough to touch, like someone has lifted the lid off the world and left the universe steaming gently in the cold night air. Both gents have their own Facebook page by the way, if you are interested in seeing some of their astrophotography work. 

These two know their craft inside out. Spending time with them is like sitting beside some seasoned sailors I know, who can read the sky the way others read newspapers. Luckily, I’m a lifelong learner—happiest with a notebook full of new ideas, and a mind grappling with fresh tricks and techniques.

WA happens to own the same mount as me—the EQM-35 Pro. His was bought new and ‘serviced’ by Dark Frame Ltd; mine is a well-travelled third-hand veteran that’s survived three different owner styles!  Anyone who owns this mount knows balancing it can feel, on occasions, like coaxing a rusty gate to swing smoothly - thanks to Sky-Watcher’s famously “thick” factory grease in both RA and DEC.

(I have done a beginners guide to doing a meridian flip with your ASIair Mini - here - https://undersouthwestskies.blogspot.com/2025/12/beginner-tutorial-how-to-set-up.html )

To my surprise, my old mount wasn’t quite the cantankerous creature I believed it to be. After WA let me try balancing his setup, mine suddenly felt less like a “drifting spacecraft fighting micro-gravity tumble and more like a mount settling calmly into alignment.”

I started imaging IC 63, the Ghost of Cassiopeia, at around 19:00. For a while, everything ran beautifully. Then came the meridian flip at 22:00 - and the night then suddenly unravelled like a dropped ball of string.

I’m convinced meridian flips on the ASIAir Mini qualify as a dark art. That few minute lead up to the flip – the app timer taunting me, watching my confidence peak… only to be let down after flip time passes – crushing disappointment!

WA’s flip was perfect, effortlessly done, as if ASIAir itself were bowing in respect to his considerable knowledge and professionalism. Mine? My mount stared at me with all the enthusiasm of a mule refusing a steep hill. I had to flip manually, losing twenty minutes reframing. Then the guiding decided to misbehave. Star trailing everywhere. No tweak, nudge, setting, or prayer could fix it. Maddening. Infuriating actually!

Regardless of my technological stupidity and mount mutiny, the night itself was pure magic - crisp, cold, and clear. The new crescent Moon dipped behind the Great Mewstone around 20:00, scattering a last golden shimmer across Wembury Bay like an artist dragging a paintbrush of light golden hues over dark water.

At around 19:00 we caught sight of a Starlink launch low on the southwest horizon - a surreal greenish glow followed by a pearl-string parade of fast-moving satellites racing into lower Earth orbit. For a moment, it felt like the universe was staging its own UFO sci-fi theatrical moment just for us.

Between sips of hot coffee and glances at each other’s ASIAir screens, I learned settings and functions I didn’t even know existed. A proper steep learning curve - but a satisfying one. Despite the guiding wobbling, I managed steady 7-minute exposures, though it’s clear my mount is ready for that long-overdue service; WA was pulling off flawless 10-minute subs like it was nothing.

As the temperature dropped, the cold crept up from the gravel car park, chilling our bones, despite all our thermal layers and double duvet jackets. Breath plumed into silver clouds. Hands stiffened. But the Primus jet boil, flasks of hot drinks, and an unhealthy quantity of snacks kept the icy bite at bay.

I can’t speak for WA or Snapadile, but I loved every moment. Their advice, patience, and generosity made the night feel less like a solitary mission and more like a shared adventure beneath a friendly sky. Thanks guys. It was great meeting you both; masters of your craft and generous with your tips. Appreciated.

 

Equipment Used

• Canon 800D with clip-in Optolong L-eNhance filter
• William Optics Zenithstar 61II + 61A field flattener
• Sky-Watcher EQM-35 Pro mount
• ASIAir Mini + ZWO 120mm guide camera + RVO 32mm guide scope
• Celestron Lithium Pro power tank
• Dew bands (main + guide scope)
• Two small power banks dedicated to dew bands
• Dummy battery + power bank for the Canon 800D
• MSM green laser pen with polar alignment adapter
• Sky-Watcher right-angled polar viewer
• Neewer intervalometer

Shooting Details

• 15 × 420″ lights at ISO 1600
• 15 darks
• 25 bias
• 25 flats

 

Sometimes I get so excited to start imaging that I forget to do the basics. “More haste, less speed” - a lesson the night drove home. I checked my test shots on the rear viewer, but not the histogram, and only later realised everything was slightly underexposed. The histogram peak was kissing the left edge—not clipped, thankfully, but not ideal. Longer subs or ISO 3200 would’ve made a world of difference.

Still… even with technical gremlins, underexposed frames, and a rebellious meridian flip, it was a night full of learning, talk, laughter, and starlight. The Ghost of Cassiopeia may be faint and elusive, but the memories from that cold Devon beach feel anything but. A cracking night, top stuff.

I have fallen behind with my post editing recently, but I will add my first effort on this DSO as soon as possible - so keep checking back on this page to see a 'first' result. I will also share my post editing work flow of the image as well. 

Beginner tutorial - how to set up a meridian flip on a ZWO ASIair Mini

 How to Set Up Meridian Flip in the ASIAIR Mini

My experience of Meridian flips using the ASIair Mini and my EQM – 35- PRO mount has not been a good one thus far – twice I’ve failed to get a meridian flip to work. However, a few nights ago I saw what it should look like and gained some useful tuition from WA Emery, when we were both imaging down at Wembury.

So, in this post, I go through

·       What the meridian flip is

·       What you need to check before programming one into your ASIair

·       How to make the settings changes

·       What happens during the flip

 

Let’s get stuck straight in then:

A meridian flip is an automatic manoeuvre that slews the telescope to the opposite side of the mount when the target crosses the North-South meridian; preventing a collision between rig and mount and continuing your imaging session safely.

 

Before you start, make sure:

·       Your mount supports GoTo and ASCOM/EQMod protocol when used with ASIAIR

·       Your mount is correctly balanced on both sides

·       You’ve done a successful polar alignment

·       You’ve checked that plate solving is working and is correct

·       Your time, location, and mount parameters are correct in the ASIAIR app

To program the flip:

·       Connect Your Mount in ASIAIR as normal

·       power everything up and open the ASIair app

·       Connect the ASIAIR Mini to your mount (via USB cable or WiFi depending on mount).

·       Confirm mount is set to "Equatorial" mode.

 

This will all ensure that your ASIAIR knows the mount’s exact position and orientation to calculate when the meridian will be crossed.

 

To enable the Meridian Flip in the app:

 

·       ASIAIR App → Mount → Meridian Flip Settings (may be AMF – auto meridian flip)

·       Toggle AMF to on - This tells ASIAIR to monitor the mount’s RA position and automatically execute a flip when needed.

·       Enable Auto-Guiding Interaction – mount – flip settings menu – ‘stop guiding before flip’ - you need to enter the number of minutes you want to stop guiding before the flip – I normally do it 3 minutes before the flip time – which you can find at the bottom of the app screen. Your ASIair app and mount will work together now to identify when your imaging object will cross the N/S meridian – and it will stop the guiding (but not the tracking) X minutes before hitting the meridian line.

·       “Do AMF X minutes after Meridian” – this is how long you want your mount/guiding to wait after passing the meridian before slewing to target once more, plate solving and resuming guiding and shooting images.

Next:

·       “Recalibrate After Flip” is optional (usually not needed with high-quality mounts) but I do it because it prevents guiding from fighting the flip and ensures post-flip guiding resumes cleanly on the opposite pier side. Again, enter a time for when the mount/guiding will resume after the meridian flip.  

Points to note:

The bottom of your screen shows the time to elapse before a meridian flip is required.  I always watch my meridian flip to ensure no cables snag during the process. Remember, if your imaging exposure time risks crossing the meridian flip time, the ASIair will stop imaging before the flip so that you don’t get a partial image. This means it could be a lengthy wait before things resume the other side of the flip – e.g. 3 mins stop before flip +cancelling a 5mins exposure+ 5mins after flip+ restoring guiding and plate solving – you could lose 15 – 20 minutes of imaging time for the whole process to complete.

 

When you have entered your settings, all you need do is then start an imaging plan or autorun as you’d normally do.

Once started, the ASIAIR will display a Meridian countdown beneath the mount info (e.g., “Meridian in 32m”). The flip will only occur during an active imaging session.

 

What Happens During the Flip (Automatic)?

 

When the flip moment arrives, ASIAIR will:

·       Finish the current exposure

·       Stop guiding

·       Slew the mount to the opposite side

·       Plate-solve to re-centre your target

·       Restart guiding (with/without recalibration based on your settings)

·       Resume imaging

 

I hope this helps – this is the crib sheet for my next outing to ensure I haven’t forgotten to do anything. I will let you know how I get on.

In the meantime, as always, if I have forgotten any stages, got anything wrong or you just have some further tips to make a meridian flip experience better, do drop a comment below so we can all better learn.

Clear skies, stay safe and have enormous fun as always

Steve

PS I found this video useful

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nOZFmxMBbZM